The Team USA basketball roster needs reworking after a subpar performance at the FIBA World Cup, and Dwight Howard is campaigning for himself to make the team -- or else he threatened to drop 85 points on them.
LeBron James is reportedly interested in playing in the 2024 Paris Olympics, and he's recruiting stars such as Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant and Anthony Davis. Howard thinks the prospective roster looks good, so much so he wants to be a part of it.
"I like what I see but don't leave ya boy out …if ya leave me out I'm playing with Taiwan and I'm dropping 85," Howard wrote on Instagram.
His campaign is gaining some traction as four-time NBA champion Shaquille O'Neal shared Howard's post on his own Instagram story.
Howard most recently played for the Taiyuan Leopards in Taiwan after spending the 2021-22 season with the Los Angeles Lakers. He seems to be enjoying his time overseas and has even been making jokes about recruiting James and Chris Paul to join him.
The three-time NBA Defensive player of the year does have a decent resume with Team USA. He was part of the famous Redeem Team that took down Spain to win a gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Howard averaged 10.9 points and 5.8 rebounds in that tournament.
Sure, he was in his 20s during that time and is now 37 years old, but it seems like he still has a lot to give -- although 85 points might be a bit of a stretch. Howard won't find luck competing for Taiwan anyway, as Taiwan -- which competes under the name "Chinese Taipei" -- didn't qualify for the Olympic men's basketball tournament in Paris. Taiwan has only qualified three times in Olympic men's basketball, and the last was in 1956 at Melbourne.
